MAR-A-LAGO, Fla.—A vocal group of Catholic political activists endorsed former President Donald Trump’s candidacy on his home turf Tuesday. They also vowed to uphold four fundamental rights that they believe have been threatened since he left office.
“We wanted to surround him with prayer as he continues to be attacked from all sides,” John Yep, founder of Catholics for Catholics, told The Epoch Times.
By going all-in for President Trump, Mr. Yep’s Arizona-based group rejected the current president, despite his being of the Catholic faith—a voting bloc that has often helped decide who wins the presidency.
“Right now, we’re going up against a Catholic-in-name-only, President Joe Biden,” Mr. Yep said, adding, “We’re not judging his soul. That’s between him and God.”
But Mr. Yep says President Biden’s administration has undermined or outright attacked rights that are important to all Americans, not just Catholics: “the right to worship, the right to life, parents’ rights, and children’s rights.”
Mr. Yep stressed that, as President Trump and President Biden campaign for the presidency, “the election is not a choice between two men.”
Instead, he sees it as “a choice between two American systems ... one that is counter to everything we know as a society and one that upholds the values of a Republic.”
Catholics Exert Influence
The Catholic Church has been “the single-largest religious body in the United States” for more than a century, boasting about 60 million adherents–about one-fifth of the U.S. population, political scientist Clifford Grammich points out.Although President Trump is not Catholic, his wife, former First Lady Melania Trump, served as the nation’s first Catholic first lady since Jacqueline Kennedy, the wife of the late President John F. Kennedy, who served from 1961 to 1963.
President Kennedy’s nephew, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is running as an independent candidate, opposing both Presidents Biden and Trump.
President Trump, who has enjoyed support of about 80 percent of white evangelical Christian voters, won 50 percent of the Catholic vote in 2020, 1 percentage point higher than then-candidate Joe Biden.
The former president is respected among such people of faith for several reasons, including the fact that he appointed conservative Supreme Court justices who overturned a landmark abortion case. Their decision returned abortion regulation to the individual 50 states.
Speakers at Tuesday’s event lauded President Trump as “the most pro-life president in history,” pointing out that, in 2020, he became the first sitting president to attend the annual March for Life in Washington.
On Tuesday, several hundred people attended the Catholics for Catholics formal affair, which featured calls to action from Trump allies, pro-life activists, and people who have faced political persecution in the United States and elsewhere.
They expressed belief in President Trump’s willingness and ability to restore rights that they believe have been trampled under the current administration.
Tim Ballard, whose real-life story of fighting against child sex trafficking inspired last year’s successful Christian film, “The Sound of Freedom,” told the Mar-a-Lago audience that President Trump made great strides toward stopping that despicable and criminal trade. Mr. Ballard also said he is currently facing “lawfare” at the hands of the current administration, but he declined to reveal details.
He said President Biden’s open-border policies put more children at risk.
A Memorable Tuesday
Catholics for Catholics scheduled the event on March 19 to coincide with their faith’s annual observation of the Feast of St. Joseph, the world patron against communism.“With this in mind we will invoke his protection upon President Trump and our great country,” a description of the event said.
Mr. Yep told the crowd: “When you name your enemy, you control it.” And the enemy for their group—and the nation—is “atheistic communism,” which seeks to dismantle religion and other principles forming the bedrock of American society, he said.
Tuesday’s date took on added significance because the former president scored his latest primary election wins in several states, including Florida, where he and the former first lady cast ballots earlier in the day.
Conservative podcaster Jack Posobiec called upon the Mar-a-Lago audience to join him in applauding and cheering so loudly that Mr. Navarro could hear it from his jail cell in Miami, about 75 miles away. The group responded with a standing ovation in honor of Mr. Navarro, whom Mr. Posobiec described as a foe of the Chinese communists.
Mr. Navarro is going to prison because he had the fortitude to stand up for his principles, Mr. Posobiec said. “That is the energy we need as Catholics,” he added.
‘Toughest Man I Know’
Another Trump ally, Roger Stone, told the audience that he, too, stood his ground when federal authorities pressured him “to bear false witness” against President Trump. “I told them that they could go to hell,” he said.Mr. Stone said he has known President Trump for 45 years and declared him to be “the leader for this moment” that America faces. “He is an uncommon man,” Mr. Stone said. “Donald Trump is the toughest man I know. ... They seek to destroy him and he faces all of this with incredible optimism. He’s incredibly resolute.”
Standing up for one’s beliefs “is a noble virtue, and we see that in President Trump,” Mr. Yep told The Epoch Times.
When asked about criticisms of President Trump’s brashness and name-calling tendencies, Mr. Yep replied, “This is not a canonization ceremony; this is an endorsement. There’s a difference.”
Retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, a Trump ally, reminded the crowd that when President Trump gave his State of the Union address in 2019, he declared that “America will never be a socialist country.” It was unthinkable that a U.S. president would ever have to make such a statement, Mr. Flynn said.
The situation is worse now, he said. In a reference to the 23rd Psalm from the Bible, Mr. Flynn said, “This country is in the valley of the shadow of death.” But he called upon the audience to be “fearless” in their pursuit of what they know is right.
Politics and Religion Do Mix
Tickets to the Mar-a-Lago event sold for $1,000 apiece, but the gathering was not a fundraiser, Mr. Yep said. Instead, the money went toward covering the cost of putting on the event, which included a cocktail hour and dinner.Although Catholics for Catholics was formed just 15 months ago, the group has succeeded in mobilizing Catholics. Large crowds turned out for “rosary rallies” that the group has organized.
In June last year, the group held a prayer procession with 5,000 people protesting the Los Angeles Dodgers’ decision to honor a drag queen group.
The Catholic Prayer for Trump event was put together in only about three weeks, but it drew media coverage from as far away as Sweden, Mr. Yep said.
Mr. Yep explained why Catholics for Catholics tends to take outspoken stances.
“Some groups may manipulate faith for a political end. We are the opposite,” he told The Epoch Times. “We are Catholics who are taking advantage of politics to evangelize; politics is giving us a platform to get out there to evangelize.”
